SERENESTUDIO

Preparing a Document for Signing

This article covers the preparation stage: choosing a document, adding signers, and placing fields before you send.

Before you begin

  • You need a PDF or Word document (.docx) in the Files module. See Files Overview. Word documents are converted to PDF before the editor opens.
  • Have the names and email addresses of all signers ready. You can also pick signers from Contacts.

Starting a new document

  1. Go to Business, then Documents in the sidebar.
  2. Select New document (top-right of the document list).
  3. In the New document dialog, choose the PDF or Word file you want to use from the list of your files. If the list is empty, upload the file in Files first.
  4. The portal opens the field placement editor.

You can also start from Files: open the file’s menu and choose Send for signature.

Conversion of a Word document takes a few seconds.

Adding signers

Before placing fields, add the people who need to sign. The right-hand pane has a Signers section:

  1. Select Add first signer (or Add if you already have signers).
  2. In the Add signer dialog, choose From Contacts to search by name, company, or email, or choose Email address to enter a Full name and Email address.
  3. Select Add signer. Repeat for each signer.

Each signer is assigned a color in the editor so you can see which fields belong to which person at a glance. Signers sign in the order listed, and you can drag a signer in the list to reorder them. Select a signer in the list to make them the active signer; new fields are assigned to the active signer. To remove a signer, use the small remove button on their row.

Placing fields

Fields are placed by dragging from the Fields section in the right-hand pane onto the document. Fields can be placed only after you add a signer.

Available field types:

Field Description
Signature The signer’s signature
Initials The signer’s initials
Date signed Filled in automatically with the date the signer signs
Full name The signer’s full name
Email An email address
Phone A phone number
Address An address
Business name The signer’s business name
Text A free-text entry field

You can also drag a ready-made group from Signature Blocks: Sign + Name + Date or Sign + Name + Title + Date. A block places several fields at once.

To place a field:

  1. Select the signer who should fill it in.
  2. Drag the field type (or a signature block) onto the position on the document page.
  3. Resize the field by dragging the handle at its bottom-right corner, and move it by dragging the field itself.
  4. To remove a field, select it and press Delete, or use the small remove button at its corner.

Use Zoom in, Zoom out, and Fit at the top of the editor to change how much of the page you see.

Repeat for each field you need. To send, the document needs at least one signer and at least one field.

Reviewing before sending

Before sending:

  • Scroll through every page to verify all fields are placed correctly.
  • Confirm each signer has the fields they need, such as a signature and a date.
  • Select Save to keep your changes. You must save before you can send.

When you are satisfied, proceed to Sending for Signature and Tracking Status.

Saving a draft

Select Save to keep your field placements. If you leave with unsaved changes, the editor asks whether to leave without saving.

The document appears in the document list with status Draft as soon as you create it. To return to it later:

  1. Go to Business, then Documents.
  2. Find the document in the list with status Draft.
  3. Select Edit template.

To remove a draft, select Delete on its row, or Delete draft in the editor. The draft and its field placements are permanently removed. The source file is not affected.

Next steps